Life Reversed
by Cloudish
Summary: It all started from that eventful day, when Ran and Shinichi went to Tropical Land. The case, the men in black, the drug. But this time around the drug does something different to our unlucky Shinichi... and now he's discovered a shocking secret...
1. Chapter 1

I stumbled towards home, sporting a sever headache. The rain was coming down hard, so I decided to rest for a bit under an abandoned bus stop and hopefully get my bearings.

I dropped onto the slightly damp bench and laid out the facts. Okay, number one. I was Kudo Shinichi, famous high school detective. That was good; the hit to my head hadn't made me lose my memory.

Number two. I had been spending the evening with my friend, Ran, at Tropical Land when a case came up. So far so good.

Number three. After solving the case with relative ease, I had followed a suspicious man in black that had been on our roller coaster. Turned out he was blackmailing a gun-smuggling company. Naturally, I started to take photos.

But then comes fact number four, which throws me completely out of wack. His partner came up behind me and thumped me with a pipe or something, hard enough to knock me out. What was with that? How did some petty criminal just come up behind me and catch me unawares? I felt disgusted. Unless he wasn't a petty criminal… I decided to go on with the more important issues, and tucked that thought away. Then that criminal forced a drug into my mouth. He said to his partner it was supposed to kill me, even though it wasn't tested on humans. Obviously, I wasn't dead. But would it do something else to me instead?

I suddenly looked up from the floor of the bus stop as something barreled by. It had looked strangely familiar. I ran out into the rain after it, and eventually caught up with it. Or should I say, him.

"Professor Agasa!" I exclaimed.

"Who are you?" he said, surprised, as he skidded to a halt and turned around. "I'm sorry, son, but I'm in a very big hurry-"

"No Doc, it's me, Shinichi!" I said. I felt a bit of worry that he didn't immediately recognize me.

Agasa peered forward at me, and a grin broke on his face. "Ah, Shinichi! I'm sorry; I didn't recognize you right away. It's so dark out here, and, hmm, you look a little different."

I ignored that statement for now. "Hey Doc, can we go somewhere private real quick? I've got something big to tell you," I said hurriedly.

"Sure, Shinichi. But can we go to my house? I just got a great idea for an invention," Agasa answered. I hurriedly nodded my head –oops, that had hurt- and he let me pull him to his home.

Finally, we arrived at doc's house, which stood right next to mine. Professor Agasa strode in and promptly sat at his large table, taking up a piece of metal. He tinkered with it while I sat cross-legged on the couch farther away.

"So this thing is why you ran home in the rain from Restaurant Colombo?" I asked, staring pointedly at the piece of metal. Seriously, it looked like a lump.

Professor Agasa looked up, startled. "How did you know-??" He started, and then stopped, remembering that I was a famous detective.

"Look, I'm not going to go into the details of how I know you were at Colombo, because there is something seriously weird going on tonight," I retorted.

"Go on, Shinichi," Agasa said, patiently.

I went on to explain about the case on the roller coaster, and then following the man in black, then being hit on the head, and finally, the drug. Mentioning the drug made Professor Agasa look up sharply.

"Ah, a drug?" he said, looking worriedly. "Drugs and poisons can be very dangerous, especially when not tested. You are sure he said it hadn't been tested?"

"That's what he said," I answered. "What I heard him say to his partner was that it had never been tested on humans."

"Come over here, Shinichi," Professor Agasa said, beckoning with his finger. "I've been meaning to look at you closer. You look… different, somehow."

Nervously, I stood up and walked over to the table. What did Doc mean by different? What had the stupid drug done to me!?

The professor leaned towards me and gave a long, "hmmm." He squinted, and then suddenly pulled back, and observed me from three feet away.

"Well, Shinichi," he started. "I can't… I can't rightly say this-" he said haltingly. "I mean… I'm not sure…"

"What is it?" I asked, practically bursting with curiosity. And… fear. I was never afraid before –I mean, I've stood up to murderers and not flinched- but it was this thing, this unknown ailment that the unknown drug had given me. I actually felt alarmed.

"Well…. Let me check one thing before I really make a conclusion," Agasa stammered He stumbled to a shelf and took out a large dusty book. I couldn't quite read what it said on the side, but it looked like it had pictures inside of it. Suddenly, the professor turned around, pulling out one of the pictures. He walked towards me.

It's this, Shinichi," he held the picture and looked from it to me. "This, I'm sorry to say, makes me almost quite sure of what I see."

"_What_!?" I exclaimed, frustrated. Man, he was killing me with the suspense!

"That you," Doc waggled the photograph of me, taken almost a year ago, in front of my face. "Have started to age backwards."

* * *

AN: Hi! My second fanfic... I'm sort of nervous about this one, since I just randomly started typing it. But I decided to go ahead and load it anyway. So, please tell me what you think by reviewing (and if I should keep it going)! Thanks for reading.

-Aleathiel


	2. Chapter 2

I stared at the professor. "That can't be possible!" I scoffed. "No way am I aging backw-"

The words died from my lips as I turned around and looked in the big mirror that hung on the wall. It was true. I looked a little younger than I had a few hours ago, when I had put on my jacket in front of my mirror in anticipation of going to Tropical Land.

I looked down at myself. The cuffs of my jacket seemed an inch or two longer than usual, and as I shuffled my shoe, I noticed that they seemed bigger too. I shook my head. No, it wasn't my clothes that had grown; it must be my body getting smaller.

"Doc, what'll I do?" I asked, looking back at him. "How is this even possible? It feels like something out of a book!"

Agasa led me towards a chair. "Now calm down, Shinichi," he said. "The good thing is that you haven't lost any of your smarts, right?"

I nodded and sat.

"So right now we need to decide what to do about these persons in black, correct?" stated Agasa.

"Well, they looked pretty deep in criminal activity to me," I said, finally feeling a little better. After all, being a detective was what I was good at. Sniffing out the criminal is actually enjoyable.

"And I'm pretty sure that they believe that I'm dead," I continued. Suddenly a thought struck me. "Oh no, Doc! If those men in black find out that I'm still alive, it could result in serious trouble!"

Professor Agasa's face became worried. "You are right, Shinichi," he said.

Before Agasa could say another word, there was a sudden pounding on the door. Both Doc and I jumped, our nerves already on edge. I was cautious as I approached Agasa's front door.

"Shinichi, what if it is… Them?" Agasa asked. He hovered behind my shoulder, his 'latest invention' now forgotten.

"Well, I think I can drive them off, unless they have guns," I answered nervously. "Like they did at the park," I muttered to myself.

I prepared myself as I opened the door to… Ran?

"BAKA!" Ran yelled in my face.

I grinned in relief. That was a mistake.

Her face reddened. "You idiot! All of a sudden you just left me at the park, and I felt like I would never see you again, and I had to go all by myself, and my dad was all like 'Oh, did your friend ditch you?' which you did, and then when I called a bit later you didn't answer, and then I had to come over here by myself again, only this time in the rain-" Ran had to stop her oncoming torrent of speech to catch a gasp of air.

I took the advantage and quickly said, "Sorry, Ran."

Ran blinked and seemed at a loss for words. She swept inside and sat on the couch.

After Agasa hurriedly ran to get a towel and a cup of tea, I sat next to Ran.

"I was worried about you," Ran finally whispered, her face white.

I was caught off guard.

"Well, I'm, um, fine, as you can see," I said. I tugged at my collar. "There's just this one little problem."

"What?" Ran asked, curious. "Hey, wait, you look sort of different," she said before I could answer. "Did you get a hair cut or something after you left the park?"

"Ah, yes, the park," I said. "Well you see… I was kind of fed a poison there, after I left you." I crossed my fingers and hoped that wasn't too blunt.

"What!?" Ran cried. "You're joking, right?"

"Um… no." Yep, definitely too blunt.

"You- you're not going to- to- to die, are you?" Ran was white again.

"No, luckily I don't think it's going to complete what it was meant to do," I answered, trying to calm her down. "But…"

Ran looked at me with narrow eyes. "With a detective, there's always a 'but'." She sighed, exasperated. "But what?"

"But it has this weird side effect or something." I said, swallowing. I really didn't want to keep this new and terrifying secret from my best friend, but would it hurt her if she knew the truth? I definitely did not want to put her in danger.

Luckily, Professor Agasa came in at that exact moment.

"Earl Grey, or Mint?" he asked her, handing her a towel. "I just started the tea water, but I wasn't sure what kind you wanted…" He trailed off, seeing both our expressions.

"I assume he told you that he's regressing in age?" Agasa said pointedly.

Ran stared in shock at him, her eyes moving rapidly from him to me.

I mentally smacked myself in the head. Smooth move, Doc. Now it didn't matter if the truth put her in danger. She knew it.

Suddenly Ran grinned and slowly got up. "Oh, wow, this is such a weird dream," she murmured faintly. "But I'd better be waking up soon, I have a lot of things to do tomorrow." She smiled dreamily at me and started towards the door.

"Ran!" I exclaimed. "This is not a dream!" I pinched her arm for extra measure.

Scowling at me, Ran sat down on the couch again. "Well, then, would you care to tell me what exactly is going on here?"

I told her everything I knew between the time I left her in the park and when she came banging on the door. Afterwards, she sat in a daze.

"This is so surreal," she said to me. "How is this happening to you? I don't want it to happen to you! What if you disappear before my very own eyes?"

Startled, I looked up at her. I never thought of that. What if I did just keep going back in age until I did not exist? It was freaky thought, and I didn't want to ponder on it for long.

"Well, all I'm sure of is that I'm not dead and that I gotta do something about these stupid men in black," I said firmly.

Ran smiled and pulled me to my feet. I was annoyed to notice that she was already a little taller than I was.

"Well then, I'll help you! So will Professor Agasa, right, Professor?" Ran said determinedly. "But for now, you need to get a few hours of sleep. I'm sure that solving a case, getting poisoned, and then learning that you are aging backwards can't be good for a guy," she added softly.

"Don't tell me that you're already feeling that motherly instinct now that I'm a year younger than you," I complained.

Ran snorted and shook her head, laughing. She pushed me onto one of Doc's cots that he usually sets up for full night experiments and then went with the professor to heat up the forgotten tea water.

I grimaced at her retreating form. I really did feel exhausted, though. So with the promise of help and the burden on my chest just a little lighter, I covered my eyes with my arm and dozed off.


	3. Chapter 3

I sat up, startled awake. Blearily I looked around the room, trying to remember the nightmare I was having. It was something about some men in black…

Then my focus narrowed, and I remembered that it wasn't some nightmare and that I was in Professor Agasa's living room. Everything came rushing back to me, and I gave a big sigh, flopping back down onto the cot.

I lay still for a moment, trying to think of the easiest way to get out of this stupid mess of aging backwards.

Soon I noticed that there were some murmuring voices coming from Doc's kitchen. Curious, I got up and slunk over to the door. I pressed my ear against the wood and was startled to hear Ran's voice conversing with the professor's. Had she stayed the night? I felt a bit surprised to think that she was that much worried about my situation. Surprised and annoyed.

Suddenly I heard fast footsteps coming towards the door, and before I could react, the door swung open and I fell, face first, into Ran's slippers.

"Oh, Shinichi!" she exclaimed, stepping back. I rubbed my forehead, feeling foolish.

"I was just about to wake you," she said, offering a hand.

I dropped into a chair at the kitchen table. She sat at where she had obviously been sitting already, across from Agasa. I mean, you don't have to be a detective to know that a half empty mug of coffee at the table means that someone was sitting there and talking.

I accepted the drink that Doc handed to me and stared over its rim, feeling a little depressed.

"So, what were you talking about?" I asked, thinking I already knew the answer.

Ran looked over at the professor, obviously a little uncomfortable.

"Well, we were talking about…" Ran rubbed her neck in agitation. "Um… you."

I thought so.

"And you didn't wake me up earlier so that I could talk with you about myself because…?" I questioned, tapping my coffee mug in irritation.

Agasa cut in. "Shinichi. Ran and I both thought that you are probably feeling a little overwhelmed by the current situation. We wouldn't want you to make any decisions concerning possibly all our lives without a clear head."

I tried to make myself look as enraged as I could as I stood up abruptly.

"Well, did you ever think that maybe not involving me in a talk that will concern the rest of my possibly short life was a stupid choice for the both of you?!" I cried.

"You shouldn't just exclude me from decision-making now that this… _thing_," I gestured at my body, "happened to me. I'm not a child!" I pointed at Ran. "I'm the same age as you and we're best friends." Then I turned my gaze to Doc, "And you and I are neighbors and we've known each other for sixteen or something years!"

I let out a frustrated sigh and turned to go, but Ran reached out and caught my arm. She looked at me with desperate eyes.

Agasa started to get up. "But that's exactly my point, Shinichi! We've known you long enough to know that you are very capable to do the sometimes impossible! But we don't want to just let you figure out how to get out of this trouble by yourself. You can trust us to help you, at least until you can think reasonably about this subject."

"Yeah, Shinichi, right now you are acting sort of like a different person," Ran added worriedly.

I knew arguing would just prove how right they were, but I just felt the need to fight. "That's because I am a different person now!" I yelled at the top of my lungs.

I wrenched my arm out of Ran's grasp and tore out of the house, slamming Agasa's front door behind me.

I ran for two blocks and then walked to a park I knew was nearby, scuffing the leaves with my feet. I scuffed them with the feet that wore a shoe size that was nearly two sizes too big.

I let out a snarl and punched the closest tree. I learned that was a very bad choice to vent my anger. I collapsed on a nearby bench and started to nurse my throbbing knuckles.

I felt a flash of guilt. But what had I done wrong? It was those guys that had been acting all high and mighty, trying to make decisions for me ever since I took that stupid drug. I mean, I couldn't control the way the drug made me look. And those two knew that I was a regular sixteen-year-old, no matter how much younger I seemed.

Then again, I had been acting pretty nasty to them. It was just that… Ughh. I let out a sigh. All I wanted now were things to go back to normal. I missed being Kudo Shinichi, high school detective.

I got up and started to walk back. Maybe I had been too rough on them. I know that if anything like this had happened to Ran, I would have tried to always be by her side, helping her. So I decided I would accept their help, for now.

Soon I stood in front of Agasa's house again. I let myself in and walked over to the kitchen. I popped my head in and started a hasty apology.

"Look, I'm sorry. You guys were right, I was a little-"

I stopped short and ran into the kitchen. The cold coffee mugs were still there, but Ran and Agasa were nowhere to be seen.

* * *

AN: Dun dun dun… Find out what happens in Chapter Four, coming soon! Or at least as soon as I finish a World History project. *makes face* I've been bust ALL week. I guess it's like they say: no rest for the weary.

Sorry if this chapter seemed so non-eventful. Don't worry; I'm pretty sure the next chapter will be much more exciting!


	4. Chapter 4

I stopped short and ran into the kitchen. The cold coffee mugs were still there, but Ran and Agasa were nowhere to be seen.

* * *

Panic rose in my throat.

"Agasa!" I yelled, rushing into the next room. What could have happened to the Doc and Ran? Surely not the men in black…?

I decided not to finish my thought. The thing to focus on was finding them. Before anyone else did.

With growing dread, I rushed into Agasa's main experiment room. I stopped short. There, sitting calmly in a chair, was Agasa. He turned to me, and I saw he had been starting to set up some sort of experiment.

Before I could say anything –and give him a good talking to- Agasa spoke.

"Ah, Shinichi, there you are! I was about to go looking for you." The Doc looked immensely pleased.

I rubbed my eyes wearily and didn't know whether to be relieved or angry. Agasa continued.

"Ran went home in order to set some things right." He stopped and muttered something about phone calls from angry fathers. "But we both sincerely wanted to apologize-"

I cut him off. "No, Doc. No. It's me who needs to apologize. I was acting a little stupid. I think this is all going to my head. Or maybe it's just lack of sleep," I grimaced and thought of the nights before, when I had decided to run on three hours of sleep four times in a row.

Agasa gave a grin. "Quite all right, my boy."

"But… What are you doing?" I asked, coming around the table to look at the instruments he had taken out.

"Ah, I'm glad you asked!" Agasa looked practically delighted. "You see, since we have no idea what this drug did… I mean, is doing to you, I planned to take a few tests and possibly find out!"

"That's a good idea, Doc," I said, sitting in a chair.

Agasa looked pleased. "Well, I'm no scientist, but I bet my pin-striped suspenders that I can find out a little information that will help us manage this drug!"

I ignored the suspender comment and nodded. "Lets hurry then," I said, scooting my chair closer to the table. "We need to learn as much as we can," I glanced out the window, "before those men in black do."

After an hour and a half of taking my blood, examining my spit, and comparing me to all the previous photographs of myself, Agasa sat back and let out a big sigh.

"Well, Shinichi," he said as he twiddled with his moustache, "I can say with confidence that you are about fourteen years old." He looked at his clipboard where he had taken a few messy notes and made some calculations and continued.

"After the initial dose of that drug that those men in black gave you, you automatically became one year younger than you were. Now I am pretty sure that you are regressing, after that one boost, systematically one year every 24 hours."

He cleared his voice and looked up at me expectantly. I stared at him with a blank face. What did he say?

"Shinichi, you have fourteen days to live," Agasa said gently.

That's when the initial shock soaked in. _Fourteen days to live!_ Never had my life felt so fragile in my hands; not when facing murderous criminals, not when seeing lifeless bodies, not even when I got hurt. Now I had only fourteen precious more days to savor it.

I hardened my resolve. No. I would not just let myself shrink into a nothing until the fourteenth day was up. I would go out and find those men in black. I would make them pay, and then I would get the drug and bring it to Doc so he could make an antidote. And I would save myself, like I always do.

I stood up. "I'll go tell Ran," I said. Agasa nodded and turned to finish cleaning up the lab.

I ran all the way to Ran's.

When I arrived at the doorstep (panting harder than I usually do), I considered ringing the doorbell and waiting for Ran to answer the door. After all, I had walked in on Ran a couple of times at the wrong moment, and I didn't want to do that again. But Ran was an old friend, and I knew that she wouldn't mind me bursting in. Besides, I felt like being a little dramatic for the news I was bringing. Maybe I got a little of it from my mother's side.

After catching my breath, I silently padded up the staircase that led to the apartment above the Mouri Detective Agency. As I passed the cracked agency door, I glimpsed Ran's father, "Detective" Mouri Kogoro, asleep at his desk. Drooling, of course. Typical.

I made my way to the apartment threshold and was about to go in when I herd hushed voices. My detective instinct kicked in and I slipped inside, making sure I wasn't seen by anyone. Not that I saw anyone else.

I made my way to the source of the voices. And snickered. What I had thought might be a dangerous scenario was only a soap opera on the television. I turned off the show just as the whispering couple kissed.

Then I paused and cocked my head. I still heard the hushed voices. Well, except with the television off, now it was only one voice. I found it coming from Ran's room. Feeling a little guilty to be spying on Ran again, I made my way down the hallway and stopped in front of her door. On it was a little cat sticker near the handle. As I crouched down, I stared at the cat's little paws and listened to Ran talking.

"Yeah, I know, Mom. But listen, I have something I want to tell you."

She paused for a moment and listened to the other end. I figured she was talking to Eri, her mother. She worked as a lawyer, and divorced Ran's dad a while back. A very scary woman, in my opinion.

"Well, it's about Shinichi."

I stopped, my heart frozen. She was going to tell her mom about my condition?! Then I relaxed. Well, that was okay. Eri might be scary, but she could be trusted. I planned to tell my mom, too. Well, maybe sometime later. A lot later.

"Yeah. Well, anyway, it started when Shinichi and I went to Tropical Land. No, nothing happened! Well, maybe it was a _little_ romantic…"

There was an awkward moment and Ran blushed. For the record, I felt a little heat on my cheeks too.

"There was a case, and then-"

Suddenly Ran cut off.

"You know, Mom, I feel a little guilty about telling you all of this. I mean, I didn't really get permission from him or anything…"

Ran listened to the other line for while. I felt a warm glow in my chest. Ran was still good old Ran. I knew I could always trust Ran. But I didn't care if she told her mom, anyway. I trusted Eri too.

"You're right as always, Mom." Ran smiled. She went on to explain everything that had happened last night. I leaned on the wall and was startled to find myself relieved that someone else knew now. There was someone else that could share the burden of fighting against these men in black.

That is, until Ran echoed something that stopped my blood in it's tracks.

"Yeah, it is sort of funny that the men in black were using an untested- Wait, did I say that the drug was not tested before?"

I grasped my arm and gripped it tightly. No, Ran had definitely not mentioned that fact. And how else would Eri know?... Suddenly my world was reeling. I could no longer trust Eri. She might even be partnered with the men in black. Whatever she was part of, I knew for certain that somehow she had gotten inside information straight from the people in black.

"Of course, Mom." She grinned wearily. "I know, I know, I've been really tired recently. I can't believe I'm already forgetting things right after I say them."

I gnashed my teeth in frustration. No, it wasn't true!

Suddenly my foot slipped and I fell on the floor with a loud thump.

"Wait a second, Mom. I think someone's in the hall."

I scrambled up and tried to appear as if I had been coming down the hallway. Ran's door flew open and she stood there, a little surprised, holding her hand over the phone's end. She might've been a little surprised to see me now fourteen, too.

"Dad?..." she trailed off when she saw it was me. "Oh, Shin-"

I held my hand over her mouth so she couldn't finish, and tried to take the phone from her to turn it off. But Ran stubbornly held on to it and kept it above my head, her hand sliding off the receiver in the process.

"What are you doing?" she hissed.

"Nothing!" I growled back. "Just give me the phone!" I made a swipe.

"Hello? What is going on over there?" Eri's stern voice sounded from the phone. Suddenly I realized I had made a horrible mistake. I shouldn't have stayed. As soon as I heard Eri's slip up, I should have bolted and hopefully made it to Agasa's before going somewhere where I maybe could have been hidden, at least for a while.

Now, though, Eri knew that I was there and had probably overheard her error. I was in mortal danger.

I abruptly turned and ran down the hallway. To give myself a few more minutes of escape, instead of shouting I made an exaggerated gesture to flee. Ran just looked at me in confusion.

"Ran?" I faintly heard Eri say again.

With one last desperate glance backward, I ran full tilt out of the apartment. I knew Ran would probably be safe. She didn't know that Eri had lied –all she had seen was me acting a little crazy. Hopefully if Eri went over to the apartment in hopes of finding me, she would spare Ran. Ran _was_ her daughter that she loved. But Agasa, on the other hand…

I silently cursed and pulled out my phone. I had made sure not to make any calls on it in case the men in black could somehow find and trace them. But time was ticking. I texted a hasty message to the Doc. It read:

Gone fishing (no time to lose). You should too.

**-Shinichi**

Yeah, it was cheesy. But hopefully it would save both our lives. I prayed that if anyone hacked into my cell's history and found the message, they would think it was just an innocent plan for the weekend. Of course, hopefully Agasa would understand that fishing meant trying to find and expose or kill the men in black. And that he should get out of his house as fast as he could. All I could do was hope.

Then I tucked my phone away and ran for my life.

* * *

Sooo sorry it's been more than a month between updates!! I had a lot of school stuff, and then my computer was acting all sick and stuff. I lost almost half my chapter and learned that I do not enjoy rewriting things, though it does help you…

Thank you to everyone that has reviewed, and favorited, and alerted this story! You don't know how much it means to me, and how much it keeps me going. (Well, maybe you do, but thank you anyway!)

You know, sometimes I wonder if Eri really should be suspected as part of the organization or not. Well, I've made her a baddie now! Heh heh heh. Tell me what you think, please!

-Aleathiel :)


	5. Chapter 5

A Park Somewhere, 9:30 a.m. -- Thirteen days to live

I felt a rough shove, and then I was falling onto the hard cement ground. I opened my eyes and tried to wake up a little more to see who had pushed me.

The large face of a teenager loomed in front of me.

"Hey, kid," he sneered. "Didn't your momma ever teach you that it's rude to be sleeping where people need to sit?" He grinned nastily. "Or are you just a homeless brat?"

I gritted my teeth in anger, and then stood up to my full height in front of the boy. Unfortunately, I was still a few inches shorter than the teenager, but that didn't matter. I knew soccer.

I kicked the jerk only once and he ran away like a dog with his his tail between his legs. _That'll teach you not to pick on kids that look a few years younger than you._ I thought after him.

I sat back down on the bench I had been sleeping on, and grimaced. I was definitely not in a safe area yet; any man in black could just see me in this park. But I couldn't think of who or where to go to yet.

My parents? No, they were still in America, and they didn't even know about my situation yet. It would take too long for them to come over and get situated. I could be dead already, shrunken into a nothing by then.

I tried to continue my mental list, but I couldn't think of anyone else. Ran, Agasa, and even Ran's dad (though I doubted that that guy could ever help me) were out of the question. Eri –and the men in black- would see me right away if I ever sought them out.

Who then? I didn't want to tell anyone from my school; I couldn't think of a teacher or student that I could trust with this. Why did it have to end up like this? I had to worry about growing a year younger every day, I had to catch the men in black before I grew too young, I had to find their poison (if it even still existed), I had to somehow get Agasa so that he could make the antidote, and I had to do it all in thirteen days. I definitely needed some help.

I put my head down on my hands and groaned. I was the detective of the east and I couldn't even think of someone to help me!

Suddenly that gave me an idea. I lifted my head and thought hard. I remembered hearing of a detective of the west, who was another high school detective. But what was his name…? I thought maybe it stared with an H, but I wasn't sure.

Either way, the detective of the west was probably my best bet. I just had to find some way to get to Osaka, where I heard he was from. I stood and felt in my pocket. There was enough change to get me on a train most of the way there. I smiled a little. That was why I never emptied my pockets every night; for a detective, you never knew what could come in handy. I sighed as I put the money back in my pocket. To bad I didn't have more money. I needed a belt badly; my pants were slipping.

* * *

Osaka Station, 12:15 p.m. -- Twelve and a half days to live

As I stood in the Osaka train station I felt the nervousness of being unprepared. I didn't have enough money to go back to Tokyo, and how did I even know the detective of the west would be a friendly guy? _Oh well_, I thought. Maybe I could solve a case and earn some money that way.

I shivered a little. It sure was cold for springtime. Probably sleeping outside on that bench hadn't done any good for my condition. I suddenly gave a sneeze without warning.

A woman passing by with a stroller looked at me with a wrinkled nose. Oops, maybe I had accidentally sneezed on her baby.

"Sorry!" I called after her. Strangely, she looked at me and started walking back towards me. _Oh great_, I thought. I didn't want this lady getting on to me now. I had stuff to do.

"Young man," the lady said as she caught up to me. "You don't look like you're from here. Are you alone?"

I definitely wasn't expecting that. "Uh, well, I… yeah." I stuttered.

The woman looked surprised. "Are you lost?" she asked. Then she peered at me closer. She must have been looking at my mussed up hair and wrinkled, too-big clothes, because then she added, "Or running away?" She said the last part in a tone that I did not like.

"No!" I said quickly. "No, no. I'm actually, uh, visiting someone I know here in Osaka. My parents are fine with it."

I hoped that that story would make her go away, but she was unrelenting. Her baby cooed as she looked at me with narrowed eyes. "I don't believe you," she declared.

I groaned.

"You are too young to be on your own," she added, and grasped my arm. I gave another groan. Seriously, I looked twelve and a half now; that wasn't too young!

"You've got to believe me!" I said as the lady dragged me to who knows where. "I really don't have a lot of time, and…" I trailed off when I saw where she was taking me. It was the train station's police station.

_Oh no_, I thought to myself. Even though Osaka was not my hometown, there were sure to be police officers that recognize the face of Kudo Shinichi. And it would be horrible if word got out where I was; the men in black would know my location. I was sure that they heard from Eri already and now knew I was still alive and that the drug didn't kill me. But getting my location would just be the cherry on top for them.

Luckily, I had a baseball cap that I had thrown on yesterday afternoon. I had worn it in hopes that if anyone saw me (especially the men in black), they would not think of a young Kudo Shinichi, or of Shinichi at all. They would just think I was a random passing kid. Now I prayed that the hat would trick the police as well.

"Officer," the woman called out to a bored looking man behind the counter at the small police station. "I think I've found a runaway." I scowled at her, making sure my face was down. "Either that or he's lost his parents," she said stiffly.

Her baby in cried and waved his hands. _I feel for you, kiddo_, I thought to him. _You've got one tough mom._

"Well, kid," the policeman drawled. "I suppose we should look ya up to see you ya are. What's yur name?"

I silently snorted. I would never give my real name, of course, and I was sure the man would have a hard time looking up a fake name, even though I hadn't made one yet. _Let me put that on my to-do list_, I thought sarcastically.

"Well, young man?" the lady said, a bit impatiently. "I have other things to do today, I might add."

I glared at her. "As do I!" I said, wrenching my arm out of her grasp and running quickly away.

I heard both the police officer and the lady yelling after me as I took off down the crowded sidewalk next to the train tracks. The baby was screaming his desires as well. _Hope I never see you all again too_, I thought cheerfully back. Then I sobered. _Why do I always find myself running?_ I asked myself.

Suddenly, I had to swerve to the right to avoid a lady with multiple bags and I smacked right into somebody. We both fell down.

"Owww!" groaned the person, rubbing his head. I looked up to see that it was a dark-skinned teenager, wearing a hat. "Watch where your goin', kid!"

"Sorry," I muttered. Then I peered closer. I almost recognized the guy… Oh well, I'd probably think who it was later.

The teenager got up, rolled his eyes at me, and started to walk off.

Then I thought of something. Since I couldn't go to the police station again and ask for directions to the detective of the west, I needed to stop someone and ask them. The teenager I had run into looked like he knew his way around; I quickly got up and ran after him.

As soon as I caught up with him, the boy whirled around and looked at me hard. "What're you doin', followin' me?" he questioned.

"Well, I sort of need directions," I said, making sure he didn't get a good look at my face. "Do you know where I can find the detective of the west?"

The boy snorted and started to walk off. "Ha, ha. Veeery funny," he called over his shoulder.

I was confused. "No wait!" I called after him, running to catch up to his fast steps.

"I really do need to find the detective!" I panted.

The teenager stopped, exasperated, and said, "Why?"

I nearly bumped into him. "Well, that's for him to know. It's a little important."

The guy blinked. "Look kid," he said. "I don't do cases that are only a _little_ important. I solve crimes and mysteries that are for the police and that are _really_ important. I ain't gonna find your lost dog or anythin'!"

Ah, now I understood. "Oh, so you're the detective of the west!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, so 'bye," the detective muttered. He turned around.

"Then I have no problem telling you what some criminals did," I said to his back.

The teenage detective kept his back to me, but I could tell by the cock of his head that he was interested.

"Not only were they involved in a gun smuggling," I said quietly, "but they also murder people with poison."

Now I had the detective's full attention. "How do you know all this, kid?" he asked, turning to look at me again.

"I would prefer if we could talk somewhere private," I said coolly, not answering his question. The detective looked a little annoyed at first, but then he nodded his head.

* * *

Hattori Residence, 1:00 p.m. -- Twelve and a (little less than) half days to live

We sat down across from each other at a table in the detective's house. I had learned that his name was Hattori Heiji (I knew it had started with an H) and after we had entered his house he had flipped my cap off and been shocked.

Heiji had regained his composure and was about to open his mouth to ask something. He must've guessed I was just a look-alike, but I had quickly said, "No, I really am Kudo Shinichi."

His face became stunned again. "H-how…?"

"This," I had gestured at myself, "was the reason I came to get your help." We sat down at the table.

So here we were, staring at each other. "Are you going to say anything?" I asked the gaping Heiji.

"Ah… y-yeah!" He broke out of his trance, got two sodas out of the refrigerator, and then sat down, wide-eyed. "So how in the world did this happen?" he asked.

I opened my drink and told him the whole story.

Half an hour later, we both sat deep in thought. We didn't talk, but occasionally we would sip our drinks.

"Wow," said Heiji finally. "So if you want me to help you on this case, lemme ask: do you have any leads?"

I looked down, a bit ashamed. "Well, I tried to think of some, but it's nearly impossible to find any information on these guys. It's like the men in black almost don't exist." I sighed. "The only proof that they're out there is me," I said bitterly.

Heiji must have seen my depressed look, because he quickly patted my shoulder. "Ah, don't worry, buddy," he said cheerfully. "We'll get these men in black before you shrink into a nothing!"

I looked at him and rolled my eyes. "Thanks, Hattori," I said dryly.

Suddenly, we both heard a noise at the front door. Someone was yelling, and thumping on the front door. Heiji had locked it after I had asked him to, but the person must've broken it open or something, because soon there was a great crash of the door coming open and running footsteps came down the hallway.

"Shoot!" Heiji muttered under his breath. "We're found out!"

"What?!" I asked, panicked.

"Here!" Heiji said frantically, pushing me into a nearby room and then shoving me into a narrow closet. "Lock the door, hurry!" he shouted through the wood, and then he was running away.

I did as he said, and then I felt foolish. I was the great detective of the east. I bet I could beat some criminal up! I was about to unlock the closet door and then run back and help Hattori, when suddenly I heard the yelling in the kitchen.

"Where…s…he?" the yelling voice said. I could barely hear the voice through the wood of the closet, even though they were shouting. The voice sounded feminine, though I wasn't surprised. Now that I knew Eri was in league with the men in black, anyone was a suspect.

"You…bet…ow…e…where…he…s!" I heard her yell menacingly. Heiji yelled something too, and then there where sounds like someone kicking someone else. I hoped Heiji was the person winning.

That must not of been the case, though, because soon there were footsteps right outside the room I was in, and I could hear Heiji groaning in the kitchen.

I swallowed hard. At least Heiji was still alive. If I just stayed quiet, maybe we could both get away alive. I moved back a little deeper in the closet.

BIG mistake. Something clattered to the floor as I moved and I heard the person looking for me run into the room I was in and come in front of the closet.

The person pried open the door, and I squinted my eyes from the sudden burst of light to see my attacker.

* * *

Authors Note: Hey again! I sort of wanted to make this one a "dun dun dun" moment... you can guess who the mysterious person is, and find out on the next chapter! Heh heh. But school is almost done, whoo! :) As soon as the summer comes (which is only in FOUR weeks) I'll be free to type every day... which means more chapters faster... yay! But I do still have school and violin things to focus on right now. T-T _/good mood ruined/_

Oh yeah, I wanted to mention that I made a few changes to the layout of the story. Well, only one, actually. I put where, what time, and how many more days Shinichi has to live at the start of each, uh, section thing. Please tell me what you think about this!! I will decide whether to keep it or take it off based on comments...

Anyway, please review, and thank you for reading!!!

~Alea


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